Kremlin says Putin willing in principle to resume Ukraine peace talks in November

Russian President Vladimir Putin told US special envoy Steve Witkoff that Moscow is ready in principle to restart talks with Ukraine and the United States next month aimed at ending the conflict, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on Wednesday. No negotiations of this kind have been held since February, making the signal the first indication in months of a possible return to the table. Ushakov said the proposed round should concentrate on what he described as building a security system for Russia and Ukraine after the conflict ends.

According to Ushakov, Witkoff briefed Putin on meetings he held the previous day in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Norway's prime minister and the Finnish president. The Kremlin aide said the US envoy noted some new approaches and points in the positions of European governments and Kyiv, though he added that they did not contain much that was useful for resolving the crisis. The Putin-Witkoff meeting lasted almost three hours.

Moscow's account offered no timeline beyond November and no confirmation from the Ukrainian or US sides. The Kremlin's phrasing left the substance of any future talks undefined, with Ushakov framing the agenda around post-war security arrangements rather than immediate ceasefire terms. Because the statement came through a Kremlin aide rather than a joint announcement, the scope of any actual resumption remains unclear.

The two sides also discussed implementation of an October 9 deal between Putin and US President Donald Trump covering supplies of Russian diesel to US and world markets, Ushakov said. That agreement was previously announced but details on volumes and timing have not been made public.

Iran was also on the agenda. Ushakov said Putin stressed that the potential for diplomacy is far from exhausted and that agreements with Tehran, which he called a strategic partner, are both possible and necessary. He added that Russia reaffirmed its readiness to keep facilitating the search for political and diplomatic solutions to the Iranian issue.